


Hating you is second nature

by NK_321



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate universe - Mafia, Arranged Marriage, Dom/sub, Enemies to Lovers, Hate Sex, Multi, Possessive Behavior, Rivalry, Rough Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-24
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:40:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 21,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23303290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NK_321/pseuds/NK_321
Summary: Steve and Natasha have never met, but they have absolutely heard of each other. They never plan on meeting if they can help it, not until their fathers’ reveal terms to their newly brokered alliance.... and neither of them are having it.AU where Steve and Natasha are part of rival crime families and are forced to marry.
Relationships: Jane Foster/Thor, Loki/Natasha Romanov, Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov, Tony Stark/Bruce Banner
Comments: 48
Kudos: 249





	1. Chapter 1

Something in the air was off and Natalia “Natasha” Romanova could feel it. She could hear the click of her red soled Louboutins on the mahogany floor just a little more than was normal and the usual cacophony of voices from her father’s drawing room were at a low murmur. Ivan was planning something. It came as no surprise to her that she was not informed. While her father prized her above all else as his only child,he kept her at arms length,only giving her enough of a taste of his confidence to keep her wanting more, to keep her loyal. The machinations of a true manipulator. She shook her head at the thought, suppressing a wry smile and continued to head towards the stairs. The sooner she reached her chambers, the sooner she could remove the blades strapped to her ribs. They were a cumbersome but necessary part of her existence and she couldn’t wait to remove them and maybe throw a couple at her father’s head later. Someone cleared their throat behind her, snapping her from that particular fantasy, and she turned around regaining her composure.

”M-Miss Romanova your father requests your presence”, Bruce Banner shifted nervously as he relayed the message, his eyes trained to the floor. Natasha only smirked at her father’s lackey, one of the few who showed genuine deference to her.

”Please inform my father that I do not have to adhere to his every request and if he in future requires my presence he can bother to inform me of the purpose.” She turned back around waiting for the inevitable reply, she knew her father well enough to never disobey him but she did enjoy pulling on her leash a little. 

Bruce blanched at that and hurriedly replied.

“Miss Romanova, I apologise but your father was most insistent that you make yourself available immediately.” His eyes flickered up to hers then with genuine fear before stuttering out, “and that I would pay with my life if I failed to bring you to him”.

And there is was, Natasha nearly rolled her eyes at the statement. Her father was beyond ruthless in a way that no longer surprised her. She looked down at Bruce, who currently had sweat pouring from his forehead,and wondered why her father had kept such a pitiful man around for so long. She let out a feigned sigh of annoyance and gestured for Bruce to lead the way. He leapt to attention with almost comical relief and began scuttling down the hall with Natasha following at a leisurely pace behind.

The doors swung open and every male gaze turned to look at Natasha as she waltzed into her father’s drawing room. She could feel every hungry man’s eyes take in her carefully cultivated image of fiery red curls and a black Dior dress with a killer slit. With impeccable posture she passed by them ignoring all of them except the one that mattered. Ivan’s stare gave nothing away but there was a different energy about him and it all seemed to be directed at her. Despite her seemingly being in control she had the newfound feeling of being a lamb to slaughter and her father was holding the knife.

’моя дочь (my daughter), please join us. We have important matters to discuss’, Ivan’s onyx eyes were baring into her skull and she found herself uncharacteristically nodding submissively and taking a hurriedly vacated seat at her father’s right hand. “ We are all aware that the Rogers clan have been infringing on our territory in downtown New York from their position upstate for the last 3 years. It is fair to say that our relations with them have been... complicated”.

Natasha nearly snorted at her father’s word choice. The bloodbath that had been occurring across state lines was now months away from a full scale war. Hundreds of lives has been lost, millions of dollars worth of arms stolen or destroyed, but ‘complicated’ was one way of putting it.

”I have no fear of the Rogers. They do not have the power to truly harm us. However, we cannot fight a war on two fronts. The Odinson family have joined with the Maximoffs and they now collectively have full control of Florida, South Carolina and Georgia. Loki has now assumed leadership and with the Maximoff’s behind him he will come for us next’.

Natasha’s eyes darkened at the mention of Loki. The man had a deep obsession with her that has never faded. He had stalked her for an entire year and eventually attempted to kidnap her after she refused his proposal of marriage. The way he had grabbed her like a piece of meat he owned was still burned into her brain, her only consolation was the scar he must now have over his right eye, courtesy of her. Any other man would have been dead by her hand or by her father’s but Loki,the powerful conniving bastard, had only grown in power since their altercation. The news sent a pang of horror into her body and she found herself clutching her exquisitely crafted armchair. She knew that Loki would not just be coming after her father’s territory but after her. The thought sent revulsion down her spine. She had become so lost in thought that she must have missed her father directly addressing her as every eye turned her way once again.   
  


“To seal this new alliance with the Rogers family, my daughter Natasha will marry their heir Steve Rogers in a month’s time’.

Natasha suppressed the urge to stab her father right there and then, instead plastering a well practised smile on her face that said she knew all about this. Marry Steve Rogers? Her father had to be fucking kidding.

жжжжжжжж

  
  
The bullet ricocheted off the wall of the alley as Steve Rogers slammed the scumbag’s hand into the railing. He pried the gun from the traitor’s hand as he kneed him repeatedly in the gut. Steve then kicked the gun down the alley before smashing the man’s head violently into the metal railing. He dropped like a stone, blinded by the blood now rushing   
into his eyes and began murmuring pleas of mercy in a fool’s mantra. Steve crouched down slowly, removing his handgun from his jacket and placing it at the temple of the man before him. The man was now silent as he stared desperately into Steve’s eyes for any piece of humanity - it was not there.

“Now, now Rumlow, it didn’t have to end like this, did it? No. But you decided to sell out my father for that piece of shit Loki and a bag of cash. That money seems pretty fucking useless now doesn’t it?”, 

Steve slowly moved the gun from Rumlow’s temple to the centre of his skull, “Pretty fucking useless, just like you. I never did like you and now my father had given me the very enjoyable task of killing you and your entire family”.

Rumlow began to protest at the mention of his family and Steve abruptly stopped him, ‘Shhhh, don’t fret. You can solve all of your problems with one little favour. If you tell me where you were next meant to meet Loki then maybe, just maybe, I won’t chop your family into itty bitty pieces. How does that sound?”.  


Brock Rumlow began feverously nodding his head and told Steve quickly of the location. With the information revealed, Steve rose from his crouch and mechanically fired twice into Rumlow’s skull with meticulous precision before stalking back off down the alleyway.

Steve arrived an hour later at his father’s compound expecting to find Joseph Rogers busy but he was instead waiting for him upon his arrival. Steve was slightly taken aback by his father’s eagerness to see him and guessed he was just eager to know Loki’s next location. That was until he looked past his father and saw his mother. Sarah Rogers involved herself in as little of the family business as she possibly could and so her presence was not only confusing but it meant something important was about to happen. Steve held back a groan as he dismounted his motorbike and made his way over to his parents.   
  


“Hi Dad, Mom. Are we planning a family dinner tonight or something?”, Steve said , his voice dripping with sarcasm. Joseph only stared down his son while his mother looked at him with disappointment. It really must be serious if his parents were being this uptight, they usually indulged him at least a little.

”Please son, can you please just come inside and listen to what your mother and I have to say”, Joseph was commanding as always but there was an urgency to his tone that Steve was unused to. Steve followed his parents inside and was starting to admit that he was curious as to what had got his parents so worked up.

” Steve, I have been placing more and more responsibility on you lately and you have been coping well”, Joseph began by saying. Steve knew all about that, he knew his father was grooming him to take over some day and while it wasn’t something he exactly loved, he damn well wasn’t going to let anyone else usurp his position.

”Now I must ask you to take on your biggest commitment for this family yet, for the sake of our survival”, at that Steve began to look rather alarmed as he looked between his parents, his mother looking at him with trepidation, his father with expectation.

“In order for our family to survive the threat of the Odinson-Maximoff alliance we have decided to make an alliance of our own - with the Romanova’s. We have been in deliberations for several weeks and it has been decided, given the history between our two organisations, that we need a concrete cementing of the alliance. And so it has been agreed that you will marry Natalia Romanova, Ivan’s daughter, next month”.   
  


Steve couldn’t believe what he was hearing. They wanted him- him! To marry some random girl in a months time? They had to be fucking kidding. 


	2. Chapter 2

Natasha waited for the sycophants to leave the room before turning to her father, her voice tight. “Care to offer an explanation or do I not even get that?”.

Her father gave a sigh and simply stared at her. Natasha snapped. She launched an attack at her father, unsheathing the blade from her dress and making to stab his throat. She didn’t get very far before her father automatically blocked the assault by clutching her wrist and twisting her arm till the blade slid from her grasp. Well, it was worth a try at least. 

“You goddamn bastard! You didn’t even fucking ask me and now you want me to what? Have an arranged marriage? To Steve fucking Rogers? From what I heard he has a different woman in his bed every night. Is that what I am to you? A whore that you can just sell to the highest bidder?”. 

Nothing. No response.He was motionless, as if he had expected this and was already tired of it. 

“Answer me for god’s sake!”.

“Natalia, you are acting like a child. You know that you are very dear to me моя дочь (my daughter). Perhaps I have even spoiled you, but let me make this very clear. You. Will. Fall. In. Line. Everything I have built, what will one day become yours, depends on this alliance withstanding the Odinson and Maximoff assault and we will survive no matter the cost. You will marry the Rogers boy and that is the end of it”.

“No”

”да (yes), we all have to make sacrifices Natalia.”

“And what sacrifices are you making папа (papa),hm? You say you have spoilt me when you have actually neglected me and pushed me out and yet I have always stayed loyal. I have always ‘fallen in line’ but not this time. Not even for you. Not after everything, after Loki ...”, Natasha’s voice began to break but she refused to cry in front of her father, he would only think her weaker than he already did. To her surprise her father’s eyes did soften. Marginally.   
  


“I have never wished to hurt you Natasha but if you do not do this, everything will collapse. It is likely we will all die and if Loki gets his hands on you again...”, Ivan didn’t need to finish, they both knew what would happen. Ivan released her wrist that Natasha had failed to realise he was still holding and moved them both to sit down.   
  


“I have never regretted anything more than not being able to gut that man for what he did to you. It will forever haunt me, so understand me when I say that I am also doing this to protect you. I am sorry to do this Natasha but without this marriage there will not be enough trust between us and the Rogers family. Not with the current enmity between us.”

”So a mutual hostage. That was the deal? That’s my protection? Trapped with god knows what kind of a man to save me from another one. How can I marry him papa? Everything I know of Steve Rogers says he will not even respect me, let alone love me. This will never work - ”

Her father reaches out to touch her cheek and Natasha let him. “ Natalia, you are my daughter and I will tolerate no disrespect towards you. Do not worry about him loving you, you can make any man fall to his knees, and if he turns out to be the exception you can survive without him. I have raised you to be strong Natalia, you can do this”, he paused to look at her and his gaze hardened once more, “You will do this”. 

With that her father’s hand moved from her face and he left her alone in the room before she could even say a word.

жжжжжжжж

  
“No fucking way. Nope, I refuse. No”. Steve flopped down onto the nearest sofa slung his arm over the back of it and stared down his parents. This was not happening, in no universe was he going to marry Natalia Romanova. And he certainly wasn’t doing it in a month’s time.

”Steve, please understand why we need you to do this. Think of our family. Loki is coming for the Romanovas and then it will be us”, said Sarah Rogers her eyes desperately pleading with her son. He had always been so difficult and they couldn’t afford it at times like this.   
  


“Let them come for us. I’ll kill the Scandinavian bastard and his brother before they even know what him them”. At that his father turned violently and grabbed Steve by the throat.   
  
  


“What?! You think you’re just going to take out the Odinsons and Maximoffs all by yourself? If you think that’s possible you’re a fucking fool. A fool who doesn’t deserve to be my son and heir”, Joseph’s face was livid and for the first time Steve began to take this seriously. Sarah tapped Joseph on the shoulder and he loosened his grip on Steve, backing away but his face was like stone.   
  


“Make no mistake son, you will marry the Romanova girl and you will treat her with respect. Ivan’s daughter will be a proper woman not like those worthless girls you bring around every night. You will treat her right or you put the safety of us all in jeopardy”.   
  


Steve was now slumped on the sofa in despair. This was just fucking fantastic. Not only would he have to marry some woman he didn’t know, and he’d heard she was a piece of work, but he also couldn’t fuck anyone else? He’d be having words with his new wife about that. Wait. He was not agreeing to this, why was he already calling her his wife.   
  


“Was there really no other option. Hell why don’t you offer up Maria, maybe this Natalia girl doesn’t even like guys. I’m sure they’d be happy with either Rogers sibling”, Steve was joking. Almost. His parents once again turned livid and his father looked about five seconds away from tearing his throat out.

”That’s enough, you are marrying her and that is final. It has been agreed and you will meet each other tomorrow. Now stop with this ridiculous posturing before I make Bucky my successor instead of you”. His father shot him one last commanding glare before leaving the room, slamming the door behind him, leaving Steve alone with his mother.   
  


“Look Steve - ”, Sarah started and Steve shot her a disdainful look. She sighed and sat down next to him.”I know this isn’t what you wanted but this might actually help you settle down a little. This is a hard life and it could be easier with a partner by your side. She’s from this world, she could help shoulder the burden. You might even like her, I’ve heard she’s rather beautiful.”

Steve doubted that. Rumours of beauty tended to be bullshit but he guessed there was no helping that now. No. Now he was tying the knot with a perfect stranger and his mother actually believed they’d be riding off into the sunset together. Steve had little faith in that and settled on the hope that they could agree to ignore each other and he could continue to see his string of girls. Sharon text him just then, oh the irony, asking if they were still on tonight and he replied back. ‘Yes. See you there baby’. Might as well have one last night of freedom before his life went to shit. 


	3. Chapter 3

“That’s got to be the most absurd thing I’ve ever heard.”  
  


Natasha tossed her head back as she took another shot of vodka and turned her head to where her best friend, Jane Foster, sat.

“Yeah, well, my father will do fucking crazy shit to get his way. Guess this time I’m the collateral damage. Yippee!”.

Natasha signalled to the bartender to bring another round of shots. He looked her up and down appreciatively before coming over. Natasha couldn’t decide if she wanted to punch him or say to hell with it and fuck him for looking at her like that. They were sat in ‘Marvel’, a dive bar downtown, and Natasha didn’t think there was enough alcohol in the world to get her through the night but she was damn well going to give it a try.   
  


“But he can’t force you to do this can he? I know I’m not exactly a part of this world but with what I saw when I was with Thor.... before that ended horribly... I never heard of anything like this”.

Natasha just shrugged before taking another shot. Jane sunk back in her chair and looked at her friend. Natasha was a mess. She looked gorgeous, as usual, but she was on edge like Jane had never seen her and she was starting to get worried. She knew Ivan only in passing but had gotten a chill down her spine every time. He was not someone she exactly imagined as a great father but she would never have expected him to do something like this.

“Why Nat? Why do you have to do this?”

“Well you can thank the psycho brother of your ex-boyfriend”.

  
Jane was taken aback at the mention of Thor. Their relationship had fallen apart when he’d refused to open up about anything in his life. She couldn’t deal with his endless secrets and broke it off. Now she couldn’t help but think that those secrets may have had to do with Loki and whatever the hell it was that led to Natasha getting an arranged marriage. 

Then it dawned on her.

”Loki is coming after you again?”, Jane said with trepidation. Natasha only stared straight ahead, giving Jane all the answers she needed. “I-I’m so sorry Nat, I know that you barely escaped last time but- “.

Jane grabbed her friend’s hands and clutched then in her own. Natasha spun around slightly startled but Jane only held her tighter, staring deep into Natasha’s eyes, willing her to listen.

“But, I will never, NEVER, let that bastard anywhere near you again. Neither will Clint and neither will you father. You know I would jump in front of a bullet for you Nat and I know you’d do the same for me. And-“, Jane’s voice quavered before she spoke again, “and if this Steve Rogers can protect you then I’ll even be grateful for him.”

  
Natasha looked at her then to see if she was serious. She was. Natasha took a breath and thought about this for the first time. She was really going to do this, wasn’t she? Tomorrow she was going to meet a man, in a month she was going to marry him, in a year, what? Have a kid with this man? She was going to have a whole different life than what she’d planned, though she never planned that far ahead. And she would do it, to save the organisation, to help her father and to keep herself safe. Hell, she never really had a choice. 

Natasha took one last shot, winked at the bartender and sprung up from her stool. “Come on. Let’s dance one last time before my wedding?”.She pulled Jane up then as she jumped to her feet and dragged her to the dance floor. She was going to spend this night with her closest friend, dancing into oblivion before the shit show that would be tomorrow.   
  
  
  
  
  


жжжжжжжж

Sharon waited about three seconds before laughing hysterically.

”You’re telling me that you, fucking playboy extraordinaire, is gonna get married?”.

“ A little bit of sympathy would be nice”.

Steve was laid in bed with Sharon next to him. The sex had been rougher than usual and she’d asked where his aggression had come from. He’d told her and this was the response.

Sharon burst out laughing again at Steve’s expression, “I’m sorry, but this is the funniest shit I’ve ever heard”.

“Yeah well it ain’t fucking funny for me. I’m gonna have some nagging girl attached at my hip for the rest of my life. And I’m not allowed to fuck anyone else.”

Sharon stopped laughing at that. “Are they being serious?”

“That stopped you didn’t it. Are you gonna miss our little meetings Sharon?”

”Not as much as you apparently. I have other guys Steve. You might be my favourite and I’ll miss you but even I’m not gonna fuck with Ivan Romanova.”

Steve sighed at that and collapsed on the bed. “The fucking Romanovas. First they kill two of my best men, then they steal 20 million dollars worth of arms from my father and now they’re even controlling who I fuck.”

”Well maybe if you talk to this Natalie of whatever the fuck she might be a bit understanding of your... needs”, with that’s Sharon’s hand began to drag her fingers up his thigh.

”Well it’s Natalia actually and yeah she might, or she might be as much of a bitch as I’ve heard and try and castrate me. Welcome to married life I guess”.

”Well I don’t know who your sources are but I’ve heard rather different things about the Romanova girl.” Sharon sat up out of her bed and made her way to the kitchen inside her flat. She began pouring them both a glass of scotch and brought it over to Steve as he looked up at her with interest.

”Why? What do you know about her”

”Honestly? Not that much. I’ve heard her called ‘Black Widow’ because of all the men she’s seduced and killed but that could be bullshit. She’s rumoured to be beautiful and the apple of her father’s eye. Now that I believe a bit more. Ruthless, powerful and pretty. Seems like your type Rogers. Not like I’m particularly powerful. I just run one of your father’s clubs, although one that you like to visit an awful lot. ”

  
  
Steve smirked at that but pondered what Sharon has just said. He’d never thought of Natalia as a sort of version of him but if she was, that could prove even more challenging. A woman as stubborn and ruthless as him would be hard to dominate and Steve didn’t like being out of control.   
  


“I guess I’ll find out tomorrow who’s sources have been telling the truth.”

”You’re meeting her tomorrow ? Wow, they haven’t given you much time to think this through”

Steve downed the last bit of scotch and placed the glass right on the edge of the bedside table. “Oh, trust me. They don’t want me to think. They just want me to obey. It’s not like I have much of a choice. I refuse this and my father will give the reins to Bucky and though I love that man like a brother, he will not end up the head of this family. No one gets to control me once my father’s gone.”

Sharon just stared at him quietly and made her way to sit down on the bed. Steve pulled her close once more and into a kiss. He was glad he’d chosen Sharon for his last night of freedom before his impending marriage. He was going to make this night last as long as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi sorry this one took a bit longer, had a bunch of schoolwork to work to do and teaching myself A-Levels in quarantine is no joke. Anyway, thank you for all your amazing comments and I’m planning on continuing this story for a while so don’t worry. I promise they are meeting in the next chapter, I won’t keep you waiting much longer.


	4. Chapter 4

She _felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck as she left Clint’s place. She shook off the feeling but pulled a blade from the sheath on her thigh. She continued down the street before ducking into a nearby alley, trying to get her bearings on her surrounding. She was on high alert, so when a black van pulled up at the end of the alley, she was already running. Four men exited the van and came towards her with calm efficiency, but she wasn’t going to give them the time - the time to take her.  
_

_She leapt on the first man, before the others could get closer, stabbing him in the neck as he reached for his gun. She happily picked up said gun as his body slumped to the floor. She looked up, another man was there now, and she knew that fucking face anywhere. A chill went through her body. No fucking way, no fucking way were they gonna take her to him. She fired three shots, one for each of the anonymous men, and they dropped like flies. She fired again - fuck. She was out of bullets. A grin started to spread across his face. Slowly, he started walking towards her a gun raised, his eyes began roaming down her now blood-stained dress and the gleam in his eye promised -_

  
“Miss Romanova?”, the sound of Bruce Banner’s voice forced Natasha to wake with a start. She was coated in sweat and not for the first time. Natasha took a moment to steady her breathing and brush the hair back from her face before responding.   
  


“What is it Bruce? It better be fucking important.”

”The boss said that you must be ready in two hours to meet the Rogers. You will be meeting at the Rogers’ residence and your father asks that you dress and act appropriately”.   
  
  


There was no reply. Bruce waited outside of the door nervously, unsure if he should continue the conversation. He had heard about the marital arrangements and felt rather uncomfortable with them. Bruce had no romantic interest in Natasha but a part of him cared about this mysterious woman that he spent so much time around and yet knew so little about. Her first response had had a breathless quality to it and Bruce wondered as to what Miss Romanova had dreamed about. He knew enough about her, and the organisation they both were apart of, to know it wasn’t something good.   
  


“Miss Romanova?”

”I got the fucking message Bruce. Now scurry off back to my father and leave me in peace.” Bruce did just that, but not before looking back, his eyes full of questions, at the chambers of his Boss’ daughter.

Natasha let out a breath as soon as she heard Bruce’s footsteps echo down the hall. This was just fucking fantastic. Waking up from one nightmare and into another. She flung the red silken covers from her king sized bed and shuffled into her bathroom. She needed a shower to wash off the sticky alcohol she’d spilled from the previous night as well as the lecherous stench of that man.He’d haunted her dreams since the moment she met him and she couldn’t wait for him to fuck off. She peeled off her nightgown and stepped into the shower, feeling the water hit her face she instantly began to relax. 

жжжжжжжж

“Steve open this door or I’ll break it down!”. 

James ‘Bucky’ Barnes stood outside Sharon Carter’s flat, waiting for Steve to haul his arse out of bed. He didn’t have time for this shit. Bucky had spent the morning scoping out the Romanova estate, checking the rival family wasn’t going to use this meeting as a trap, and now he was playing babysitter for his best friend. He was about to start kicking when the door swung open to reveal a very pissed off Sharon Carter.   
  
  


“Don’t you fucking dare James Barnes. Don’t you fucking dare!”. 

“Sorry Sharon but I’ve got to get our boy here up and dressed before the boss skins me alive.”, Sharon continued to glare at him and didn’t budge from the door, “The door would only have been collateral damage, you live in our world, that’s something you know plenty about.”

With that Sharon huffed and moved from the door, the scene behind her wasn’t pretty. Steve was sprawled, butt naked on Sharon’s bed and from the sound of his snores he wasn’t waking up anytime soon. Bucky feigned a sigh before grabbing the leftover glass of water and dumping it over Steve’s head.

”Wake up Rogers. Your future wife is waiting for you and if you aren’t there in an hour your dad will put us both in an early grave.”

Steve spluttered awake but froze as he saw Bucky standing above him.

”Jesus Christ Buck, I’m coming, I’m coming. Let’s not keep my bride to be waiting”. The sarcasm dripped from Steve’s voice and Bucky didn’t appreciate it. He grabbed Steve by the forearm and dragged him from the bed.

”Put some clothes on Steve and hurry the fuck up. You might not be taking this seriously but you’re going to marry this woman. Ivan Romanova won’t take kindly to you showing up late and I doubt his daughter will either.” 

“Yeah, well, I don’t give two shits what Ivan Romanova will appreciate.”

”Well since he’s gonna be your father-in-law I’d start caring. Grow up Steve, you might not be on the front lines of this war but I am and my boys are. Don’t blow this truce, don’t blow our one chance of survival on you being a piece of shit.”

Steve grimaced at his friend’s words, his head pounding from his late night drinking, but knew Bucky was right. Even he wasn’t dumb enough to ruin this alliance before it had even begun. He quickly got dressed while Bucky and Sharon watched. He finished and turned to them. They were still staring.

”What?”

”You look like shit”. Sharon said it before Bucky could. Steve’s crumpled clothes from the night before definitely wouldn’t do. Bucky interrupted before Steve could respond.

”We’re going now. The meeting is at your father’s compound, we will pick up some suitable clothes on the way.”  
  
  


Steve didn’t even bother saying anything else. He gave Sharon a quick kiss before grabbing his jacket and heading out the door, right past Bucky.

”Call me later and tell me how it goes, will you?”. Bucky turned to Sharon in surprise. She simply shrugged. “I get the feeling this meeting is gonna be one for the ages”.

  
жжжжжжжж

  
Natasha felt her father’s eyes on her as she stared out of the car window. She turned to him expectantly. She was wearing a navy blue Prada jumpsuit and her favourite red soled Louboutin heels, the only thing in this car she currently had any affection for. She was here, but she sure as shit wasn’t happy about it.   
  


“I’m proud of you Natalia. I always knew- “.   
  


“Save me the speech папа (father). Why are we going to their compound? It’s not like you to do meetings on someone else’s terms”. Now this Natasha was actually curious about. Her father was notoriously territorial and as nice as the speech her father had been about to give, it would have been empty.

“Well-”, Ivan studied her for a moment as if wondering if he was going to throw her this little tidbit. He must have felt rather generous today since he decided to share this with her, or guilty. Either way Natasha was past caring. “ It seems the Rogers’ have acquired some important information that they agreed to give up in return for the meeting to be on their turf.”

”A quid pro quo? How do we know this information is valuable enough?”

”Because I was told that that information also concerns you. You are very valuable to me Natalia, even you know that, and so I was willing to give up as little a thing as a meeting place in order to attain this intel.”

Natasha looked at her father then, wondering what game he was playing. She was about to ask him just that when their car came to a halt. They were here.

Bruce opened the door of the black Land Rover and Natasha stepped out. She looked around the Rogers’ estate and was impressed by what she saw. While the Romanova’s estate was reminiscent of Russian architecture, the Rogers compound had a dual staircase that led to a red bricked fortress. Elegant, with old English design but a fortress nonetheless. There were armed guards on the roof, at the main door, at the gate they had driven through and all around on patrol. It seemed the Rogers weren’t taking any chances. Neither was her father, apparently, since they’d arrived in a five car escort and easily had thirty armed men accompanying them. An amicable alliance indeed.

  
Natasha made her way over to where her father stood. He offered her arm and she took it, a well rehearsed dance between the two of them, one that was necessary to project a united front. They ascended the stairs, leading the way as her fathers men fell in line behind them. Once the procession reached the main doors a man was there to greet them.

”Welcome Mr Romanova, Miss Romanova. I am Sam Wilson, please allow me to escort you to the meeting room”.

Ivan almost imperceptibly nodded his head and at that this Sam Wilson looked visibly relieved. They made their way down the corridor but no paintings adorned the walls as they did at the Romanova estate, instead a large American flag was splayed across the right-hand wall. Natasha huffed at that, a patriotic criminal mastermind, who would have thought. Sam arrived at a pair of oak doors and quickly opened them. Ivan nodded to Bruce and another lackey to enter first as a precaution. Sam didn’t even have a chance to utter another word but he kept staring at Natasha, not with lust but interest. If Natasha had to guess she’d bet he was one of Steve’s friends, well wasn’t that just great. For the heck of it Natasha tossed a smile at Sam before heading into the room. 

  
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Steve shifted in his Armani suit as he waited in his father’s meeting room. Sarah Rogers was pacing nervously, wringing her hands as she walked while Joseph Rogers sat at the head of the table completely still. Joseph hadn’t even bothered to yell at Steve for showing up just ten minutes ago, clearly he was on edge. As was Steve, if he was being honest, but he didn’t have time to ponder how apprehensive he was because at that moment the double doors opened. Steve caught a flash of that famed red hair and braced himself for the moment of truth.  
  


Jesus Christ. Well, at least they weren’t lying about how fucking beautiful she was. Dark red curls elegantly cascading down her back, a contrasting blue jumpsuit that left little to the imagination and piercing green eyes staring right at him made for a killer combination. Holy fuck. Steve could see her sizing him up too and if the small smirk and gleaming eyes were any indication, she didn’t find him too shabby either. Ivan sat down at the other end of the table and what must be one of her father’s men, a rather nerdy looking man, pulled Natalia a chair at her father’s right. Their eyes never left each other until Joseph began to speak.

”Welcome to our home Mr Romanova. I trust you and your daughter had a safe journey”

”Please, as we are now allies call me Ivan”

”And you may call me Joseph”.

Despite the proclamations of unity the air was tense. Steve looked at his soon to be fiancé but her face revealed nothing, a perfect mirror of his own. This was going to be interesting.

“If you will allow me to get down to business”. Ivan merely inclined his head at Joseph’s words. “Then the engagement will begin today, lasting a period of one month and then a wedding ceremony on May the third. The cost of the wedding will be footed by us, as proof of our commitment to this alliance. Furthermore all our enterprises will now be joined, splitting equally all profits and responsibilities. The terms of this alliance are also dependent on mutual protection, in particular against the Odinson-Maximoff threat”.

Steve nearly let out a whistle at that. Well at least this arrangement was going to be economically beneficial. The reminder of the imminent wedding date though did alarm Steve and he looked again at Natalia. While he was now sure sex was not going to be a problem, he knew very little about this woman and what he had heard wouldn’t result in a happy marriage in his book. He shifted his focus to Ivan Romanova, the cold bastard’s face was unmoving, and Steve couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Ivan looked once at his daughter and then began to speak, his Russian accent rather thick.

”To show our commitment to this alliance, not only will I consent to this marriage between my daughter and your son but also to any children borne to the marriage to carry the Rogers name . If all goes well we shall soon be one united organisation. One that will withstand any incoming threat”.

Steve had seen a slight flash of surprise upon Natalia’s face when the topic of children and names was mentioned. He had been surprised too and almost cringed at the mention of children but her blatant surprise was interesting.So the Russian princess wasn’t in on all of daddy’s secrets? Steve was going to be sure to keep that in mind.

The table then fell quiet. The Rogers seemed pleased that their family name would live on and Ivan showed nothing negative of nothing positive either. Two major figureheads, two of the most powerful men alive sat opposite one another at one table. His mother had stopped mercilessly kneading her hands and was now looking at Natalia with quiet contemplation, he wondered what was going through her mind. Joseph straightened before speaking again.

”And in regards to the information I promised. Please consider it an engagement gift from my son, he was, after all, the one who acquired it”. Steve didn’t let the confusion show on his face but kept his eyes trained on Natalia who’s stance shifted upon hearing that.

”My son extracted the next known location of Loki Odinson. There is a scheduled meeting at ‘The Tesseract’ club in Florida in a week’s time. Loki will be there, and if all goes as planned, so will we.”

Natalia’s eyes had widened at that and her gaze flickered between him, his father and her father. There must be something going on between Natalia and Loki for her to take such a personal interest in this, so much so that this information was an engagement gift. Natalia looked to her father, they had some sort of non-verbal communication and she turned around once more.

”If you don’t mind, I would like to be a part of this operation next week”.

Steve was surprised she had spoken and was taken aback at the sultriness of her voice. But he was even more surprised to find himself speaking.

”I don’t think that would advisable. We can’t really afford to have an untrained person hindering an operation as sensitive as this.”

Natalia shot a cold stare at him then, any goodwill he’d garnered evaporating into thin air. When she spoke her voice was laced with ice.

”I assure you that I can handle myself.”

Joseph gave him a warning glare but Steve couldn’t help responding.

”All due respect. But I have already begun planning this operation and have already selected my men. Now if you would like a few of your men to be incorporated I am sure we can come to an agreement.”

”Well, if you are able to slot in any one of my family’s men then it should not be so difficult for you to ‘incorporate’ me. Or is that too hard for your mind to get around?”

Steve’s blood boiled at that. This spoilt girl not only thought she could tag along and endanger his mission but now she was insulting his intelligence. This was not something he would take gladly. Only his father got to talk to him that way, no one else. He would take no shit from anyone, especially his future wife.

”My mind is perfectly adept Miss Romanova, I wish only not to endanger the operation. I somewhat have experience with the target and do not plan to waste this opportunity to take him out.”

Instead of backing down, Natalia only uttered an empty laugh that drew even Joseph’s attention.

”Don’t worry, I have no plans to waste this opportunity. No one in the world knows that piece of shit better than me. Whatever you imagine him to be, he is fifty times worse. I will be going on this operation or I refuse to go ahead with this marriage.”

  
Everyone in the room froze. Glares and warnings flooded across the table in a silent dance. Most notably Ivan had gripped his daughter’s arm and they were now engaged in yet another non-verbal battle of wills. Sarah looked at him alarmed but Joseph’s gaze promised violence. Steve swallowed, if this meeting went south he didn’t know who’d walk out alive. For once Steve swallowed his thoughts and stared right at Natalia.

“If it is that important to you Miss Romanova then.... yes. Yes, you can join the operation next week”. Everyone visibly gave a sigh of relief at that but Natalia still looked at him warily. This certainly wasn’t going to be a marriage of trust. Joseph cleared his throat.  
  


”Well, it seems now that all is settled”, Ivan again gave an affirmative nod but his eyes were now trained on Steve. “Thank you Ivan, and of course Natalia, for meeting with us. We have collectively purchased a well fortified estate that exists as a half way point between our two compounds. Here, I hope the newly engaged couple can live. Feel free to move in from tomorrow. Thank you for your time.”

Ivan rose from his chair, as did the rest of the Romanova party and they moved towards the door. Before leaving Ivan and Natalia came to shake hands, a symbol of a good deal struck.

”Thank you Joseph, for your hospitality. It was a pleasure doing business with you.”

”Likewise, Ivan”

Ivan then moved to Sarah, neither of them said anything only nodded in mutual respect and shook hands. When Ivan came to Steve he blanched before remembering he was fucking Steve Rogers. Ivan’s grip was strong as he shook Steve’s hand and he had to admit his pulse quickened when he leaned in to whisper in his ear.

”My daughter is the most precious thing in my life. I will not bother with threats or promises, you already know the price you must pay if you hurt my daughter. The only question is whether it is me or Natalia that performs the execution”.

With that he patted Steve’s hand and left. What a wonderful fucking welcome to the family that was. Steve looked over to see Natalia smiling as his mother spoke to her, it was genuine if he’d ever seen one. Steve was just admiring how beautiful she was when she smiled when that smile dropped as she turned to him. Deciding that they’d gotten off on the wrong foot Steve didn’t shake her hand and instead placed his lips to it. As he ended the kiss and looked up at Natalia her gaze was less stormy but still had that wariness to it. It seemed neither of them were what had been expected and neither knew whether to trust the other. Natalia removed her hand from his, linked arms with her father and left the room. The door shut behind them and Steve turned to his parents.

”Well that wasn’t a complete disaster”

Steve was convinced that the only thing stopping his father from pinning him up against the wall was his mother’s arms on Joseph’s shoulder.

”Nothing is ever easy with you is it Steve. All you had to do was not piss off the Romanova girl and you couldn’t do it. You can’t even do one fucking thing.”

Steve took a breath and decided that he’d had it. He had not asked for this marriage and he did not want it. His father didn’t get to put everything on him like that.

”Well maybe if you hadn’t engaged me to a stubborn bitch, or even engaged me at all then we wouldn’t have a fucking problem would we?”

Before Joseph had a chance to launch at him, Steve stormed out of the room. He was done with this shit. He spotted Sam in the corner and made his way over to him.

”What in the hell happened in there. She came out like -”.

”Honestly I don’t fucking care Sam. I don’t care about any of this. Just shut the fuck up and do what I tell you please”

”Alright man. What?”

”I need you to find whatever you can on Natalia Romanova”.

  
  


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“Be careful Natalia, you don’t get to make demands like that, not in important meetings.” Ivan had barely let her sit down before ripping into her with his trademark chilliness.

”I apologise папа (papa) but... you know why I have to be there. You know I can handle myself, whatever that stupid Rogers boy says”.

Ivan only stared at her and then tapped twice on the driver’s seat. The car stopped and the three men exited the car. Ivan reached across and grabbed her chin, bringing their eyes level.

”I’m warning you Natalia, do not make things difficult. That Rogers boy you speak of will be your husband very soon so you better change your fucking attitude. This alliance depends on you making this work and that Steve is nothing but a boy. You can mould him into a man, a man who will love you and who you can control. Why do you think I offered them the names of your children hmm?”

Natasha did not dare reply, she knew her father couldn’t possibly have been genuine when making that pledge, but she also knew he wasn’t expecting an answer. There was no way Ivan Romanova was going to let the family name, his name, fade.

”Because I have faith in you Natalia. I have faith that you will turn this Rogers boy and he will come to the decision himself to let any children you have carry our name. If you have played your part he will do it for you. Do not fail me Natalia, you know how I repay people who fail me.”

Ivan released her jaw and tapped twice on the window. The men climbed back into the car and began to drive once more. When they arrived at the Romanova estate Natalia went straight to her chambers and pulled out her phone.   
  


“Hey Nat, what’s up? How did the meeting go?”

”It was fucking awful, he was..... You know what? Never mind. Clint, I need you to bring me everything you can find on Steve Rogers”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This ones a bit longer but I had a lot to cover. I hope you enjoyed their first meeting, wasn’t exactly love at first sight. Anyway, thanks for all your great comments, and I’ll be writing the next chapter soon.


	5. Chapter 5

The Romanova estate was almost empty the next morning when Natasha finally ventured out of her chambers. Her body ached from the sparring she’d pushed too far the night before and it hadn’t helped the undercurrent of frustration she felt. Fucking Steve Rogers. She was only happy that Loki hadn’t decided to make another unwelcome appearance in her dreams last night, thankfully those were becoming less and less frequent. Only now a new asshole visited her sleep, one with deep blue eyes and blonde hair that she couldn’t forget. She shook Rogers from her mind and resolved to get some very late breakfast. The manor felt eerie with her father gone but there was a comfort to his absence that she felt as she entered the kitchen. She was in the middle of demolishing a pain au chocolate when Bruce entered the room in a poor attempt to be discreet.   
  


“Miss Romanova, I’m sorry to-“

”Just get to the point Bruce. What does my father want from me now?”. There wasn’t much else left for him to ask.

”He wants your things to be packed by the end of the day”. Bruce blurted it out and then became nervous again. Miss Romanova did not look happy about that and he just hoped she wasn’t in the mood to shoot the messenger - literally.

  
“Of course he does. He tells me about this engagement two fucking days ago and I’m already moving in with my future husband. Fucking unbelievable”.   
  


Natasha gripped the edge of the table where she was stood to resist smashing the glass of water next to her. She had honestly thought that she’d have more time to adjust, but of course she didn’t. No, now she was going to be living with a man that had no respect for her at all and she didn’t even get to pick the fucking house. She took a breath and began to storm up to her rooms. Bruce just stood in the kitchen wondering what in the hell was going on. He was thinking that maybe he should clean up the remainder of Miss Romanova’s breakfast when her voice echoed from the top of the stairs.

”Get a move on Bruce, I’m not packing all my shit myself.”

Bruce was surprised at that but wasn’t going to question the demand, he hurried up the stairs and into Miss Romanova’s rooms to find her aggressively flinging clothes from her closet into a suitcase. Natasha turned to him and began to glare at the motionless man. Not for the first time she wondered why her father kept him around, he didn’t seem to have any helpful function at all.   
  


“You can start over there”, Natasha said indicating to her shoe closet. Bruce’s eyes widened at the sheer size of it and Natasha snorted. “Look Banner, I don’t have a lot of perks in my life but one I do have is a fuck tonne of money. I choose to spend that on clothes. Now hurry the fuck up because I’m not doing this all day. I’m meeting with Barton later and I don’t plan on being late”.

  
Bruce didn’t have time to reply as she turned back to continue furiously dumping clothes into the now overflowing suitcase. He made his way to the shoe closet and began methodically packing all of the shoes into a suitcase with rapid speed. Natasha looked on, actually kinda impressed, but didn’t say anything. They moved in silence together, slowly erasing Natasha from her own rooms, and she suddenly felt a pang of sadness as her safe haven was pulled apart. They continued on without speaking but Natasha was glad that at least one person was with her, one person was willing to help her with no questions asked, there was comfort in that and if there was one thing Natasha Romanova needed at that moment, it was comfort.

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Steve landed a solid blow to Bucky’s side as they circled each other. They’d been at it for two hours already but Steve had yet to rid himself of the burning aggression he’d felt since that fucking meeting. Bucky moved again, hitting him in the side with his left before delivering a brutal uppercut with his right. Steve collapsed into the mat but wouldn’t let Bucky help him up.

”You’re not fighting smart Rogers, you’re pure aggression and you’re distracted. Pull yourself together or I’m gonna keep putting you on that mat”.   
  
  


Steve shot a look at Bucky before climbing to his feet. Yeah, he was being aggressive and yes, he was fucking distracted but who could blame him ? Every time he tried to concentrate he saw her insufferable, beautiful smirk and he lost all ability to think tactically. It was really driving him up the wall. He began squaring up to Bucky again when Sam Wilson entered the training room, gesturing for Steve to come over.

”Took you long enough Sam”, Steve said as he and Bucky began walking towards him. He was moving into his new house today and he wanted everything on her before he did.

”Yeah well, I had to do some digging. She’s not exactly your everyday girl”. Steve huffed at that, understatement of the fucking century.

”Natalia Alianovna Romanova, twenty five years old, born in Russia but has lived in the US since she was 8. Father Ivan Romanova, Mother is unknown but it’s assumed to be one of Ivan’s string of mistresses. She is fluent in at least seven languages, including Latin-“

”Latin? She’s fluent in a dead language? ”. Everything about this girl was a surprise and Steve didn’t like surprises. Sam just looked at him before continuing.

”She’s trained in Krav Maga, taekwondo, jujitsu, MMA, you get the gist. Reportedly she’s killed 52 people but it’s probably many more.” Even Bucky looked impressed at that.

“Guess she wasn’t lying when she said she could handle herself”, Steve muttered before turning to Sam, “What do you know about her connection to Loki ? She clearly had some history with him if that meeting was any indication.”

Sam nodded and began swiping on the tablet in front of him, clearly searching for any connection. “It says here that their first reported meeting was in January 2018 at the Asgard Foundation charity ball. She reportedly attended it with best friend Dr Jane Foster who was dating Thor Odinson at the time. There’s flags of their meetings over the next year and then-”. Sam looked to Steve to see if he wanted him to continue, Steve nodded his interest piqued.

”Well, in early December 2018 there was a near fatal kidnapping attempt of Natalia in downtown New York. It took place a few blocks from Clint Barton’s known residence, I guess they’re friends, and at the end there were four men dead in an alley and no further record of them crossing paths. There’s numerous meetings all across the year and then nothing. Whatever happened they haven’t seen each other since, that’s probably down to her. It’s amazing she escaped someone with Loki’s skill set and he must have been really motivated to try grab her on her father’s turf. So yeah, looks like the future Mrs Rogers has quite the history.”

Steve stood with his arms folded as he took in what he’d just heard, it explained a lot. The alarm tinged with fear upon hearing Loki’s name and her determination to come on the operation where he would be. Seemed that Natalia was out for revenge, and from everything else he’d heard, she was quite capable of getting it. Steve began to regret his judgement the day before of Natalia’s ineptitude. Not only was she capable of going after Loki, she had a better reason than him apparently. Steve let out a sigh and Bucky looked to him.

”I don’t know exactly what went on in that meeting yesterday but if the whispers were any indication you have some apologising to do Steve.”

”Yeah I know Buck. I kinda fucked up, but in fairness I was not the one who threatened the whole arrangement, that was her.”

Bucky just gave him a look of exasperation before making a quick call. “Come on, I’ve just had the guys move your stuff into the new place and apparently Natalia got there before you. I’ll drive you down there now”.

Steve ran a hand through his hair and loosed a breath before following Bucky. He could see Sam laughing as he left the training room and ahead of him Bucky had a barely contained smirk. He must really be in for some shit.

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Natasha had already claimed the entire right wing of the house when Steve’s men arrived. They’d immediately started moving his things into the master bedroom she’d chosen and the last bit of patience Natasha had was starting to snap.She waltzed up to the man who seemed to be coordinating the move to give him a piece of her mind.

”If you don’t mind, could you not place all of Steve’s things in this room, we’re hardly going to be sharing a bed already”. The man had turned red at that but simply shrugged.

”It’s orders from the big man and as pissed as you are with me, he will be a thousand times more pissed if I don’t get this done. Sorry, but that’s the way it is”.

Natasha couldn’t believe it. Her father-in-law clearly couldn’t wait for some fucking grandchildren. She didn’t know why she was surprised, he’d already hinted at it while they’d shook hands. She’d met Steve’s mother yesterday as well and actually enjoyed the encounter. Sarah had had a warmth and maternal energy that she’s never had in her own life and so she appreciated the effort. At least one of the Rogers family wasn’t actively making her life a living hell. She began walking away, knowing it was no use arguing with the man, her father could be pretty fucking scary and she bet Joseph could too. Natasha doubted this man was willing to have his entire family massacred over a bedroom. She saw Bruce stacking her shoes in the new walk-in closet (which was pretty sweet if she was being totally honest), and walked over.

”Thanks Bruce”. He turned to her surprised.“I’ve had a shitty couple of days and you’ve managed to not be a completely insufferable babysitter, so thanks.”

“I’m just doing my job Miss Romanova.”

”You know what, call be Natasha. My father put you on my private detail so I expect we’ll be spending a lot of time together”. Bruce just nodded but he knew it’d take a while to stop the formality. “And when I’m married I’d rather not have a constant reminder that I’m now ‘Mrs Rogers’”. She gave Bruce a conspiratorial look which he returned but the moment was interrupted by Natasha’s phone ringing.

”Please tell me you’re almost here....You’re outside? Wait a sec I’m coming down now. Stay outside I want this conversation to be private.” Natasha put down the phone and hurtled down the stairs. Clint was here. She saw his motorcycle and flung herself into his arms, he was already laughing.

”Bloody hell Nat, it’s only been a month”

”Yeah well it’s been a long fucking month, especially with all the shit going on”. She need not explain further. Clint and Natasha knew each other better than most and their bond was that of brother and sister. Natasha was so fucking glad he was back. She suddenly remembered why he was here and ducked them both behind a hedge in her new gardens.

”Is this really necessary Nat?”, she simply gave him a look and he sighed.   
  


“Okay, I’ll get to it before one of your dad’s men think you’ve gone missing. So, Steve Rogers, 30 years old, born in Brooklyn on 4th July -“

”He was born on 4th July? Huh, guess the Rogers are patriotic right down to their fucking birthdays.”

”Can I continue with things that are actually relevant”

”Sorry, yes”

“Only son of Joseph and Sarah Rogers but has a sister Maria. Has all the usual training with special aptitude with artillery. Has killed 128 people by all calculations and is soon to take over his father’s mob. Best friend James ‘Bucky’ Barnes who is his second hand basically and the third hand being Sam Wilson.”

”I met him yesterday. I’ve heard of Bucky, apparently he’s a fucking killing machine.”

”Well, they all are. They’re like the three murderous musketeers from what I’ve heard. Ruthless, calculated, deadly. They’re gonna be quite the asset to your collective mafia.”

”Don’t remind me of the whole union thing, please. Do you have anything personal?”

”Erm... well, sorry to tell you this Nat but he’s a complete fuckboy. Different girl every night, sometimes more than one girl. About ten years ago there was rumour of him settling down with a Peggy Carter but she got caught in the crossfire of an operation and killed. Ever since then there’s no evidence of a long term relationship, never mind a monogamous one. I think you’re gonna struggle controlling him Nat.”

“Well that’s great since that’s exactly what my father wants me to do. This man is so stubborn that he won’t even let me go on an operation with him and yet my father expects me to control him. After what you’ve just told me I’d have better luck taming a fucking wolf.”

”Ivan’s full of shit, Nat. He’s forcing you to do this and you’ve done it. You don’t owe him anything else. I’d concentrate on getting to know this guy rather than trying to manipulate him. It’s Steve your gonna be living with now, not your father.”

Natasha just nodded her head, thinking on Clint’s words. There was just so much pressure on her right now and she could feel it pressing down. Clint saw a look of pure anguish cross his best friend’s face and silently moved into a hug that she ferociously returned. If only they weren’t suddenly interrupted by a very pissed looking man with blond hair storming towards them. Instinctively Clint stepped in front of Nat, trying to protect her from whoever the fuck this was and Natasha didn’t get a chance to see his face, but she knew his voice.

”What the fuck is going on here? Get the fuck away from my fiancé”. 

Before Natasha had a chance to explain the situation, Steve grabbed Clint and forced him to the ground. Steve had come to the house, hoping to start fresh and had seen Natalia embracing another man. Now wasn’t that just great. He had shoved the man to the floor and they were now engaged in a battle of fists, the blows messy but painful. He only stopped when he felt himself being pinned to the grass. He looked up only to find his attacker was Natalia.

”What the fuck are you doing Steve? Promise me you’ll stop trying to murder Clint and I’ll let you up.”

Steve had no intention of letting up but he then saw the very angry face of Natalia Romanova and decided to pause for the moment.   
  


“Fine. Now get the fuck off me.”

Natasha released him and they all stood up to face each other. Goddamn he was hot like this, but Natasha ignored that thought in favour of anger.

”What exactly do you think you’re doing Steve? We’ve only known each other a day and you’re already beating up a guy for hugging me.”

”Yeah well I don’t exactly appreciate my fiancé hiding in the bushes with another man. Who the fuck are you anyway?”

”That’s Clint Barton, I’m sure you’ve heard of him he’s a pretty fucking good assassin”, Steve had actually heard of him, even before this morning’s Natalia briefing, his reputation definitely preceded him. 

  
“Well assassin or not, I don’t appreciate other men canoodling with my fiancé”. Steve didn’t really know where this jealousy came from, they’d only known each other a day, as she’d said, but she looked so fucking beautiful right now and she was his. It was him she was marrying, she was going to be his wife and Steve didn’t appreciate people touching what was his.

”That’s rich coming from you Rogers. How many women have you fucked this week alone?”.   
  


“I don’t have to fucking answer that and if you must know I haven’t slept with anyone since we became engaged.”

”Congratulations you’ve made it one day without cheating on your fiancé. Do you want a fucking medal?” The sarcasm dripped from Natasha’s voice and the fury radiated from every part of her being. Steve couldn’t help but be turned on, or at least he was till that fucking guy started speaking.

”Look, dude, chill the fuck out-“

”Don’t fucking speak to me of I’ll put a bullet in your head”

”I’d like to see you try mate”, even Clint was getting angry now. The three of them stood in a triangle, breathing heavily and shaking with rage. It took Natasha stepping between them and asking Clint to leave to diffuse the situation.

“Fine, Nat, I’ll go, but he pulls any shit like that again call me.”

Steve almost started at Clint again at that but he was on his way to his motorcycle before he could. He turned his attention back to Natasha who was about 3 inches from his face, her back pressed up against the hedge.

”For your information, Clint and I are just friends, more like siblings than anything. But even if that weren’t the case what gives you the fucking right to react like that?”

Steve stared down at her, he was regretting acting so rashly, but now she was this close to him and he wasn’t letting her get away.   
  
  


“Because, darling, you’re mine now and I’m yours. That’s how this shit works. Neither of us asked to be in this situation but I’m sure as shit not going to let you fool around with anyone else and make me a laughing stock”.

Natasha looked up at him then, realising their proximity. Fuck if his possessiveness didn’t get her wet. Here he was, so close their faces were almost touching and she couldn’t help but want to kiss him. Instead she slapped him.

“Is your reputation all you fucking care about? Well you know what, here’s a fucking deal. Neither of us fuck anyone else for our entire engagement.” Steve stopped at that, fucking hell this was going to be a long month. “If we get to our wedding and decide we’re wholly incompatible then maybe, just maybe we will discuss it again. Happy? Because you’re not fucking up my reputation either.”

Despite the slap they hadn’t moved any further away from each other but Steve did then, holding his hand out.

”It’s a deal. As long as we share a bed.” Natasha snorted at that and shook his hand. Could baby Steve Rogers never sleep alone?   
  
  


“No problem, turns out your dad was way ahead of you”. Steve looked confused at that, so she clarified. “Our stuff is already in the master bedroom together. Apparently on your father’s orders.”

Steve looked at Natalia again and assessed his actions over the last ten minutes. It wasn’t exactly the do-over he’d planned. They began walking back up to the manor, it was 60,000 square feet that was all theirs, they’d have plenty of room to kill each other, or not.

”Look I’m sorry for how I’ve acted so far. You might have gathered that I’m rather impulsive, my dad fucking hates it. I don’t want us to hate each other, I don’t hate you at all Natalia but I’m not someone you fuck with okay? I don’t want to see any shit like that again.”

Natasha looked at him out of the corner of her eye and decided to actually give this a shot. “Alright Steve. And call me Natasha, only my father calls me Natalia.”

Steve nodded but then something else came to mind. “But Clint called you Nat, can I not do that?”

”Sorry Rogers but only my friends call me Nat, and we are certainly not friends”.

Steve turned to her again indignantly, until he met her knowing gaze. God he wanted to fuck her right now, his voice was deep when he spoke next. “Well I’ll just have to call you other things won’t I?”

With that he took off to his Mercedes, leaving her to fantasise about all the many nicknames he’d dream up. He hopped into his car and began to back up out of the estate, he had business with his father to do, but before he left he looked for Natasha, who was leant against the marble stairs that led to their new estate, and drove off, the image of her playing over in his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, I hope everyone’s surviving in quarantine. Things are starting to heat up in this chapter, hope you enjoy it. I promise they’ll be more hot and heavy fight scenes. More to come soon, thank you for all the kudos and comments, I really appreciate them.


	6. Chapter 6

Steve stood with his arms folded as he was forced to watch his father watch someone else test the purity of their newest supply of marijuana. He did not need to be here. In typical fashion his father was proving who was in charge by forcing Steve to play watchdog. What was even worse was the fact that Buck and Sam had been sent out to hunt down a rogue cell that had been skimming off the money laundering profits. It would be a brutal assignment full of mind games, intimidation and actual fun stuff but he was stuck here. Not only was it a complete waste of time but, frankly, it was embarrassing. The man testing the product turned to Joseph with a grimace. It wasn’t pure. Well at least shit was about to get interesting. The supplier, only a couple weeks into working for the Rogers family, was shoved to his knees and was now quivering. Joseph stalked over.

  
“It seems we have a problem, don’t we?”

  
  
“I s-swear boss, we didn’t cut it with anything, I don’t know what - “.

The man was silenced by a bullet piercing his skull. Joseph tucked the gun back in his pocket and made his way over to a still bored Steve, leaving his men to clear up the mess currently bleeding out on the warehouse floor.

  
“How do you manage to make even murder boring dad? Hell, you could have dragged it out a bit longer, made it worth me being here at all.”

  
  
“I don’t share your childish enjoyment for playing with toys. There was a problem and now there isn’t.”

  
“Well, who our new supplier is going to be is a problem.”

“With Ivan’s suppliers we don’t need an immediate replacement. We only needed to get rid of the faulty one.”

  
“Guess you should be thanking me then, dad. The only reason you’re benefiting from this new alliance is because of my fucking commitment, so you know what? I don’t appreciate being subordinated and tested by you. I don’t appreciate being dragged here like a dog on a leash. I’m suffering enough, thanks to you.”

  
  
  
“I’ll do whatever I want with you, boy, and I’d hardly call it suffering. You’re living in a multi-million pound estate with a beautiful woman and an ever-growing empire to inherit. Besides, I made the fucking deal, I accepted Ivan’s call for alliance, not you. The only contribution you are making, son, is not sticking your dick in every girl that walks by. How is Natalia by the way? I hope you’ve gotten your act together and started reining her in.”

Steve could feel the blood thrumming through his veins as he clenched his fist. His father was a goddamn bastard and he always regretted when he forgot it.

”She’s fine, she prefers Natasha actually. I didn’t exactly get to talk to her much since you demanded I be here doing fuck all.”

“Well you better start wooing her son or she’ll make your life hell.”

”You mean like you did with mom? Just put her in a fucking safe house and make her afraid of me? I don’t think that’s going to work, nor would I want to.”

Steve turned to go but was punched in the face before he had a chance to. It took every bit of restraint he had, and he didn’t have much to begin with, to stop himself hitting back. He’d be dead before he even finished swinging.

”I will not tolerate your fucking attitude Steve. I love your mother very much, she has given me all I have ever wanted from her. She knows her place and plays her role well. It’s time you learned yours and taught this Romanova girl hers. You get that girl under your control and you have the key to the Romanova mob in your hands. I gave you a golden opportunity Steve, don’t fuck it up.”

  
With that Joseph Rogers climbed into his Land Rover and it drove off. His other men followed, leaving Steve alone in a warehouse in the middle of fucking nowhere and a burning vengeance against his father.

жжжжжжжж

Natasha watched the squadrons of men depart as she stood atop the marble staircase outside. She was relieved that there were no longer hundreds of men combing her house. No, now it was just her and her 38 security men. What a fucking way to be alone. She sighed and went into her new mansion. She’d spent the day roaming the house finding a gorgeous kitchen, two sitting rooms, an office (like either of them did fucking paperwork), five bedrooms, five bathrooms (the en suite had a jacuzzi, sweet), games, dining and meeting rooms and a big pool outside with a hot tub. It was gorgeous but Natasha was used to that and so wasn’t massively impressed. Only then did she notice the stairs leading to the basement and decided to kill some time checking that out, thanks to her dad telling her to ‘take the day off’ she had fuck all else to do. She descended the stairs and found a training room below. Oh, fuck yes.   
  


Natasha grabbed some tape and began to bind her hands before approaching a punching bag. Furiously she began to attack it, over and over again. She’d found a way to spend the next couple of hours.

жжжжжжжж

  
Steve stepped out of his Mercedes after he’d parked it in his ridiculously large driveway. He looked back and decided he really needed to bring his other cars to make it look right, the one car was rather pathetic. Fuck it, he had bigger things to worry about. His father’s words kept echoing through his brain on a loop as he made his way into the house. If he was honest, his father made a good point, if he had Natasha, he had the entire Romanova mob and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want that or that he wouldn’t enjoy getting her to submit to him. His father was still an asshole though. As he entered he began looking for his fiancé, but she was nowhere to be found. Steve was about to go upstairs when he heard grunts from below. So that’s where she was hiding, he grinned and started down towards the basement. 

  
Steve found Natasha pummelling a punching bag, sweat pouring off her and her hair up. His eyes were immediately drawn to the nape of her neck and he was so distracted that he didn’t notice her turning to face him. Their heated gazes locked and Steve couldn’t help but move towards her. Fuck, she was beautiful. He closed the distance between them for the second time that day and she smirked up at him.

”Nice of you to show up Rogers.”

”Yeah, well, my dad keeps me busy. I’m sure yours does too.”

”Normally, yeah, but he apparently had nowhere to drag me off to today since he left without a word. Saves me getting another lecture so I’m hardly losing much sleep over it.”

”Yeah, mine does that too. I swear to god he only brought me to this operation today to lord his power over me.”, Natasha snorted at that, nodding her head. Tyrannical fathers could be a nightmare, one they apparently had in common.

”Guess that’s what mafia boss fathers do. I spent the day overseeing the move-in like a fucking moron and gave myself a tour.”

Steve grinned as he imagined her shouting at men to move boxes, he bet even that would be sexy coming from her.

”And do you like the house ?”

Steve had picked it himself weeks ago, not realising he’d be having a housemate. She just shrugged and gazed up at him.

”Sure, haven’t figured out which room to kill myself in but....”, she gave a wry smile, “guess there’s plenty of time for that.”

  
“Well.... there’s also plenty of time left to train. You said you can handle yourself? Time to prove it.”

After this morning she didn’t need to, but the look of indignation was worth it for Steve, and getting to touch her all over when they sparred wouldn’t hurt either. Steve also wanted to see her in action, admittedly he was curious about her capabilities. Natasha huffed and nodded. Challenge accepted. They made their way to the matted floor where they could spar and Steve got an eyeful of her considerable cleavage in that sports bra. The grin she was sporting suggested she knew exactly what she was doing, seduce and kill was sounding much more believable. Well, two could play at that game. Steve removed his shirt to reveal his six pack beneath, if she was gonna distract him, he was damn well going to return the favour. His voice was deep and playful when he spoke.

  
“Don’t worry, darling, I’ll go easy on you.”

”No need, lover, you couldn’t keep up if you tried”.

Natasha launched at him, going for his right side, Steve just stood ground, confident he would easily absorb the impact. He did not expect that to be a distraction, since she switched positions to sweep her leg beneath and sent him crashing to the floor. Before he knew it, he was face down on the mat, his arm locked behind him and his legs pinned.   
  


“You doing okay down there Rogers”, Natasha said mockingly. Steve pushed her off as he climbed to his feet. He’d never admit it but she’d actually surprised him. He wasn’t going to let her beaming face last much longer though.

”Better savour it, baby, because that’s the last time you’ll ever be on top.”

Natasha immediately caught the double meaning in his words and blushed slightly. Goddammit, why was she blushing like some virgin schoolgirl? But fuck when he got that growl in his voice and that hungry gaze, she’d never wanted anyone to fuck her this bad. Maybe it had been a while since she last.....

Natasha’s thought was cut off by Steve’s movement. She instinctively sprang out of the way, going on the defence and managed to block the blow to her windpipe. She moved to punch his abdomen but Steve grabbed said fist, twisting it and flipping her onto the ground. Natasha was quick to get back on her feet, before she could think too long about those glistening abs. She went on the offence, sending a high kick towards his face. Steve ducked - fuck, before he moved to take out her underneath leg. She leapt away before he could and whirled around to elbow him in the jaw. The blow hit Steve square but he took the blow in stride before grabbing Natasha and sending them both to the floor with him on top. He pinned her arms and with her panting and beneath him, he could feel himself getting hard. Natasha had a similar hunger in her eyes as she struggled underneath him. Shit he was strong. Steve let his gaze wander from her breasts to her mouth that was slightly open. He was definitely hard now and his voice had an animalistic growl in it when he spoke.

”You have no idea the things I want to do to you right now”.

Natasha’s eyes widened in fake innocence. “Oh, don’t I? You mean? You don’t want to fuck me within an inch of my life? You don’t want to take me right here on the mat? You don’t want to pound into me and force me to know who’s in charge ?”

”No, I want to do all of that. And much, much more.”

Steve couldn’t wait any longer, surging forward and began to forcibly kiss her, which Natasha returned readily. Holy fuck, the kiss was a flood of pent up aggression and tension they’d been circling each other with. It was desperate, passionate and neither of them wanted it to stop. Until....

Steve howled in pain as Natasha’s knee connected with his groin and she leapt to her feet. She smirked down at him with feigned confidence but in reality she hadn’t wanted to get so lost in that kiss that she couldn’t stop.   
  


“You’ll have to do more than that to bang me Steve, and after the shit you pulled with Barton today just be glad it was only a knee in the balls.”

She sauntered off up the stairs without even looking back. Steve lay on his back, breathing heavy. He’d never been turned down before, well certainly not like that. He watched her hips sashay as she walked away and swallowed. He’d been so close to tearing her clothes off and when she’d described everything he wanted to do to her. Fuck. This woman was going to be the death of him and Steve couldn’t help wondering if this was her plan all along. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, just managed to fit in another chapter today. Hope you enjoy it and there will be more to come.

Steve jerked awake when his phone went off next to him. Seemed his father couldn’t leave him alone for one minute. He picked up the phone and decided to take the call in the bathroom after he felt Natasha stirring next to him. She had already passed out on the bed when he’d entered the night before and he was glad because he didn’t think he could have controlled himself with her in the sinfully short nightgown she was currently wearing. He yawned as he ducked into the bathroom, fuck, he needed some coffee. 

“What do you want dad ?” 

“Watch your attitude son. What I want is your plan for the Loki operation. I’ll be at the manor for 11 and you better have a fucking good plan by then.” Steve was about to put the phone down when Joseph added. “And bring Natasha with you.” 

“Why Dad?”

Joseph only hung up the phone. Steve huffed in frustration, this was a classic move from his father, he never explained shit. Bleary eyed, Steve made his way back into the bedroom and found Natasha sat up on the bed staring at him. 

“So do you have a plan ?”

Of course she had heard the whole conversation. He ought to install some sound-proofing. He did in fact have a plan, one he’d already altered for her, and he didn’t plan on changing it.

“Yes, I do. You can hear about it in the meeting.” “

Why not now? Is there something I’m not going to be happy about?” 

Maybe. Steve just sighed and stared at her again. Why did she have to look like that? Why was she so damn irresistible? 

“Fine, I’ll fill you in now.”

Steve grabbed his iPad and opened it up to the map of the Tesseract Club. He quickly explained the plan, highlighting Loki’s position in a private back room at the club. The job would be ten men and Natasha. Two men to take out Loki’s guards on the door. 4 more to secure the perimeter. Steve, Bucky and Sam to storm the room to take on Loki and one man on the roof with Natasha on lookout.

”Are you fucking kidding me?”

Steve had known this would be the reaction and he had no interest in discussing it. His voice was guttural and firm when he turned to her.

”No, I’m not fucking kidding. You know that I hadn’t planned for you to be on this operation but you insisted on coming and so I put you on lookout.”

”Fuck that Steve. I didn’t ask to be babysat by one of your men while you take on Loki. I want to kill that bastard myself or at least be there to see it.”

”I’m not altering the entire plan and risking the operation so you can play out whatever vendetta you have against Loki. After the kidnapping your judgement will be shit and you’ll storm in there without your head on straight.”

Natasha was taken aback by his knowledge of the kidnapping attempt, clearly she hadn’t buried the evidence of their history well enough. Her voice became very quiet then. “ You got someone to look into my past with Loki? You goddamn asshole. Whatever he did or did not do does not limit my capability to do a routine op. I know what the fuck I’m doing, or do I need to pin you a third time to get that message across.”

Steve’s temper flared and he yanked Natasha up from the bed to face him.

”I told you that that was the last time you’ll be on top and I meant it. Don’t disrespect me Natasha, the only reason you’re coming at all is out of my respect for you. Despite what you may believe, emotion clouds your judgement and I’m not getting my men killed because of you. As for looking into your past, are you gonna pretend you didn’t look into mine?”

Natasha glared up at him, her emerald eyes baring into his skull.

”I’m not a fucking amateur, of course I did.”

”Then what is your problem?”

”My problem is that you’re not admitting the truth. You’re right, I did look into your past and I found out all about Peggy.” Steve flinched at the mention of her name. “ I will not let you treat me like a child because some untrained girl you loved was killed in an operation. That’s the real reason you’re putting me on a fucking roof, you think I’m going to get myself killed.”

Steve’s head was spinning and moved away from Natasha, unable to look at her while he processed the now-present images of Peggy’s lifeless body. It had been her first operation after she’d joined the mob to be with Steve and he hadn’t protected her. The Hydra mob had put a hit out on his sister Maria and he was so focused on wiping them out that he missed one of Hydra’s man taking aim at her. By the time he’d noticed, her body had hit the floor. Steve had held her for hours, as if she would somehow come back to life, but she never did. The Hydra gang was obliterated in recompense but it wasn’t enough for Steve. Natasha was right, he sure as shit wasn’t letting that happen again. Steve looked at Natasha, her anger still present but laced with concern, and took a few measured breaths.

”You know what? You’re fucking right. I don’t want you to die from lack of judgement. That’s what happened to me but Peggy paid the price. I won’t let you take the chance with your life or anyone else’s. Remember if you die, this alliance dies too.”

“That goes both ways Steve and you know it. You can’t treat me like some precious commodity, hell, even my father sends me out on business.”

”Yeah,well, your father isn’t leading this attack. I am.”

”Which means you have even less of a right to stop me. I’m not Peggy-“

”Don’t fucking say her name again. Clearly, you aren’t her. Peggy was kind and determined, you’re acting like an entitled bitch.”

”I am fucking entitled to kill Loki. More than anyone else I know.”

They were both shaking with anger at this point and this time there was nothing sexual, just bitterness.

”I’m not changing the plan. You want to be on this operation? You play by my rules.”With that Steve stomped towards the door, he needed some fucking coffee, before turning back as he remembered, “ My father requested you be at the meeting, if you didn’t eavesdrop that part already. Be ready in an hour”.

Steve slammed the door as he left and Natasha collapsed onto the bed. It was only their first morning together and it seemed, already, that they couldn’t stand each other. Natasha kicked the headboard in frustration, fucking asshole. She’d spent her entire life fighting for her father to not dismiss her because she was a woman. She’d fought so that all of her father’s men would respect her enough, however grudgingly, to one day take over. The last person she was going to allow between her, and the fucker at the top of her hit list, was Steve Rogers. Natasha leant over to where her phone was and dialled the first number in her contacts.

”Hey, Clint. How do you feel about coming on an operation next week? I have a feeling I’m gonna need some backup.”


	8. Chapter 8

Steve and Natasha arrived at the Rogers compound just before 11 and they still weren’t speaking. Steve had insisted on driving them both in his Mercedes but the ride had been silent, the anger between them was palpable. Steve left the car first, making his way over to his men, Natasha recognised Sam among them, and assumed that the man Steve was hugging was Bucky Barnes.

“‘Sup Rogers, you ready to face the old man?”, Sam punched Steve on the arm as he spoke.

”Sure, the plan’s solid. Though, knowing my dad he’ll find something wrong with it.”

The boys laughed in agreement but Bucky was silent. Steve followed his line of sight to find it focussed on Natasha as she stepped out of his car.

”Is that her?”

  
Everyone’s gaze turned to her then and one of his men let out a whistle before Steve silenced him with a glare. He couldn’t exactly blame him, Natasha wore tight black jeans, a white cropped shirt and a black leather jacket, simple but impeccably tailored. She was a knockout, as usual, but Steve could see her face was once again in that unreadable mask that she’s had in the meeting.  
  


”Yep. That’s her.”

”Don’t see what your complaining about Rogers. I wouldn’t mind only fucking her for the rest of my life.”

Steve was about to warn Sam to watch his mouth when Natasha drew nearer.   
  


“Hello boys, you ready to take out this prick?”

”I am if you’re coming-“ Sam was elbowed by another man, Dave, before he could finish.

”You okay to handle yourself out there?”, Bucky spoke at last. He looked Natasha up and down appraisingly, taking in her small build, despite his knowledge of her experience. Natasha laughed at that.

”Ask Steve, I’ve already had him face down twice on the mat but I’d be happy to demonstrate on you.”

The men all looked visibly impressed at that and hid back their smirks at Steve’s barely concealed embarrassment. In an attempt to regain control of the situation, Steve cleared his throat and turned back to his men.

”She can handle herself. It’s you useless motherfuckers I’ve got to worry about.”

The group all jeered at that and Steve even spied Natasha smirking. Their eyes met and the moment of levity was lost to the tension that was still very much there. They must have locked eyes for longer than they thought because everyone had gone silent around them. They quickly broke contact and Steve began leading the mob up the stairs. Natasha lagged behind and found Bucky waiting with her.

“Будь осторожен там. Иван пригласил тебя по причине. (Be careful in there. Ivan invited you for a reason.)” Natasha was startled by Bucky’s use of Russian.

”ты думаешь я этого не знаю ?(You think I don’t know that?)”, Natasha smirked up at him but was met only with severity. “ты говоришь по-русски (You speak Russian.)”

It was a statement, not a question, but Bucky answered anyway.

”Да,я там родился, там тренировался, часть меня там умерла, я думаю. (yes, I was born there, trained there, a part of me died there, I guess.)”

Natasha only nodded. She knew how the motherland trained soldiers, and Bucky screamed military. If his training was anything like she’d endured in the red room till she was eight, well, she understood what part of him died.

“Итак, ты и Стив, Как это работает? (So, you and Steve, how is that working out?)”.

  
Natasha huffed and switched back to English.

”We’re getting on like a house on fire. One that’ll burn to the ground sooner rather than later.”

“Well, I’d start dumping water on that fire if you don’t want to get us all killed.”

“Maybe you should be saying that to your friend. You don’t know shit about me or what I’m willing to do to stop Loki.”

”Perhaps not, but still. The key to surviving Odinson and beating him is this alliance.”

Natasha only nodded and turned her attention back to the Rogers estate. She expected them to go into the same meeting room as before but instead they bypassed the hall with the American flag and descended into the basement. The room was well furnished but it was the sheer amount of artillery lining the walls that impressed Natasha. The group gathered around the table in the centre where Joseph and a few of his inner circle stood. Natasha felt Joseph eyes on her as she entered and saw him take in the distance between her and Steve. It hit her that she was only here for Joseph to observe how she and Steve were doing, for fuck’s sake. She smiled at Joseph and walked over to Steve, placing her hand on his shoulder and whispering in his ear.

”Play along, your father’s watching and I’m not failing this test. Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable.”

Before Steve could even process what she said, Natasha kissed him deeply on the lips. The kiss was perhaps a bit longer than she’d planned but when they stopped, everyone was conveniently looking anywhere else. Except for Joseph, whose eyes only narrowed before starting the meeting.

”You all know why we are here, so let’s get on with it. Steve.” He nodded his head to his son and Steve stepped forward. He quickly explained the plan and Natasha was careful to not let her annoyance show. Steve felt her tense next to him but he still refused to change the plan.

”Are you sure you do not need more men Steve? Your plan seems...open to deviation.”

Steve grimaced, he knew it was coming but it still pissed him off. His father would want to send one of his inner circle to spy on him.

”No dad, we will get it done with the eleven of us. Any more men will alert Loki to our presence. There will be no deviation, no failure.”

Joseph looked once again at Natasha and she stared right back, her face showing nothing.   
  
  


“Alright. I approve the operation. In five days time we will take out Loki and the Odinson and Maximoff alliance will fall apart. Then, with help from the Romanova’s” Natasha only nodded firmly as everyone turned to her, “ We will hold strong and expand our enterprises.”

With that Joseph dismissed the room and everyone began to file out.   
  


“ Steve, a word, and you too Natalia ?”

They both stopped and turned around, neither doing a good job of hiding their annoyance. He led them through a partition and into a luxurious lounge before sitting. He exuded a casualness that indicated he was fully in control and he knew it. He gestured for them both to sit and they did with trepidation. 

“Yeah, dad?”

” I just want to see how my future daughter-in-law is doing and how my son is treating her.”

So it was, indeed, a test. Natasha moved to match Joseph’s swaggering posture and merely shrugged.

”I’m doing just fine, it’s nice of you to be so concerned though.”

Joseph bristled, clearly not expecting Natasha to catch onto him so soon. 

”Well, I know how my son can be.”

”And how’s that, dad?”

”Childish, impulsive, stubborn. It’s a rather extensive list. I’m hoping you can curb some of his.... bad habits.”

”I’ll be sure to put that on my to do-list.”

Natasha almost rolled her eyes at Joseph, he was eerily similar to her own father, but at least Ivan would never insult her in front of anyone else and he seemed to respect her at least a little. Joseph, on the other hand, clearly found his son to be lacking but there was some sort of genuine care behind it unlike with Ivan, he only saw Natasha as an extension of himself. Joseph did not seem pleased with her lacklustre response though, and his eyes hardened.

”See that you do. Are you enjoying your living arrangements?”

”Dad”, Steve’s voice was tight and the warning in it was visceral. Natasha only glared at him, he really didn’t believe she could handle anything herself.

”Well, with us in such close quarters like you ensured, I’m sure we will find plenty of ways to enjoy ourselves.”   
  
  


Natasha was practically purring but her disdain was not subtle. Joseph regarded her again, clearly re-evaluating his son’s fiancé. 

  
  
“I was only trying to make this transition easier for you both.”

Yeah, right. He was trying to make it ‘easier’ for them to fuck and have his grandchild. Natasha’s reply was curt.

”Thank you, it’s definitely sped some things up.”

”You can say that again”, Steve mumbled before clearing his throat, “I think we’re done here dad, there’s a lot of preparation to do before we go to Florida.”

Joseph didn’t look happy with Steve cutting the meeting short but Natasha grabbed the lifeline while she could.   
  
  


“Yes, we should be going. I’m meeting my father soon”. A lie but she was thinking about dropping in to see where he’d disappeared to yesterday.

Joseph looked to her then as if he could tell she was lying but wouldn’t call her out on it. He gave a tight smile and just motioned from them to leave, which they did, hurriedly. Once they were outside Steve turned to her.

“Thanks.... you handled that well”.

”Yeah. You can thank me by letting Barton come on the op.”

”What? No fucking way am I letting him come.”

”There’s no reason to not let him. Think of it as an olive branch.”

”There is a reason, I just told my father that too many men will cause problems. I’m not bringing in anyone else, especially him.”

”Fuck off, Steve. I just saved your ass in there, the least you can do is let Clint come. It’s a peace offering, we do still have to get married in less than a month. Besides, a world class assassin is never a hindrance.”

Steve analysed her then for any ulterior motives, perhaps she was just trying to drag her boyfriend along.   
  


“Fine. Barton can come but he comes with me where I can see him.” And away from you was the part he left unspoken.

  
“Fine.”

”Fine.... let’s just go home.”

”Sure, but we need to swing by my father’s estate. I met your dad, time for you to meet mine.”


	9. Chapter 9

“Привет папа (Hello father)”

”Natalia.”

Steve didn’t know what to make of Ivan as he received them in his estate. He remained as unreadable as ever and had yet to even acknowledge Steve, his eyes focused solely on his daughter.

”Just thought I’d swing by and see where you went yesterday.”

  
Natasha exuded the same nonchalance she’d had with Joseph but Steve could tell it was tinged with a fear she apparently only reserved for her father. Ivan did not look thrown by the question and Steve couldn’t help but feel that all their conversations involved this elaborate dance. 

“And you brought the boy along with you.”

A statement, not a question.

”I did.”

”Hmm... Well, I was just convincing a certain Wall Street man that it would be in his best interest to continue to launder money for me. He disagreed. I dealt with it. Now we have even more money being cleaned and funnelled into our offshore accounts.”

”I’m sure you were very convincing папа (papa).”

  
Ivan looked carefully at his daughter and then finally turned to Steve.

“I hear Barton will be going on the Odinson operation next week.”

Steve grimaced at that but could hardly be surprised that he knew. Ivan had spies everywhere and he missed nothing, something his daughter had seemingly inherited.

”Yes, Mr Romanova, your daughter will be well protected-“

Ivan barked a laugh at that, interrupting Steve.

”My daughter needs little protection. I ensured that she didn’t need to rely on the protection of weak men.”

”I am not weak-“

”I never said you were.” 

Steve suppressed the anger that flared up then and kept his mouth shut.Ivan was clearly done with him and Natasha was already getting up to leave. Steve felt blindsided by the abrupt nature of the meeting and almost automatically trailed after Natasha. They made it into his car and Natasha just looked at him.

”What?”, Steve clenched the steering wheel as he spoke.

”You really don’t have a way with words do you?”

”What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

”It means your bad at reading people Steve.”

”Yeah, well, I prefer action over bullshitting.”

”I can see that.” Natasha smirked as she took in his frazzled energy and building annoyance. “At least take comfort in the fact that my father hasn’t called off this marriage after that.”

”I barely even got two words out-“

”Exactly. You failed his test as soon as you opened your mouth.”

”Well, fuck tests. I don’t have to prove anything to him and I’m certainly not weak.”

”The fact that you fell so easily into his trap and didn’t keep your cool makes you weak in my father’s eyes.”

”Are you serious?”

”I wish I wasn’t. That’s my life, yours seems a little more.... honest.”

”My dad is many things but honest is not one of them.”

”That’s not what I meant. The way you relate to each other is honest. You both know exactly what to expect of each other and you lay everything out on the table. I’ve been studying my father my whole life and he’s the one person that I’m never quite sure what he wants.”

”He wants to piss me off apparently.”

Natasha laughed at that and Steve huffed in response, relaxing a little.

”Your pretty easy to piss off Steve.”

  
  
“That’s because people are shit.”

Natasha’s eyes flickered to him once again and the mood suddenly became much more intense.

”Yeah.... people are shit.”

  
Steve noted the change in atmosphere and began to admire the way the light caught her auburn curls and the redness of her lips that- fuck.

“Can I kiss you?”

Natasha’s heart skipped a beat then and before she knew what was happening their lips met and they began to devour each other. The kiss was all tongue and had the passion it had been lacking when they pretended earlier.Steve swore that her kissing only got better, if that were even possible, and he found his hands beginning to roam up her body. She could feel his hands on her and let out a small moan as his fingers neared her bra, her fingers now embedded in his hair.

”Fuck, Natasha”, both their breathing was heavy as they held each other, “Can I?”

”Jesus Christ, Steve, just get on with it.”

She pushed his hands up to her breasts and tilted her head back as Steve began to kiss her neck. Steve’s hands were rough as his fingers circled her nipples and he attacked her neck with vigour. Fuck. Steve couldn’t believe that this was happening so quickly but he wasn’t going to argue with it. He pulled her into his lap and grunted as she began to grind herself slowly on top of him. They weren’t even having sex and yet this was the most aroused either of them had felt in a long time. Natasha could feel his dick hardening as her hips grounded onto him and the way he massaged her breasts so roughly was making her wet. It was only them that she realised they were still parked in the estate- her dads estate.

”Steve. Steve. Stop”, he grunted in annoyance, “seriously Steve.”

Natasha crawled off of him and collapsed into the passenger seat, her eyes surveying around them for any onlookers that thankfully weren’t there.

”What the fuck Natasha?”.

”I’m not gonna fuck you in my father’s driveway, where anyone can see us.”

Steve let out a huff of annoyance, he understood, really did, he just wished his pants weren’t suddenly so tight. The way he’d felt right then, with her finally all over him like he’d imagined since they’d met- fucking hell.   
  


“That was fun”, Natasha said, still breathing kind of heavily.

”Yeah- Yeah it was”, He let out a breath, “Can we do that again?”

Natasha playfully punched him on the arm, “Jesus you really haven’t got laid in a while.”

”And whose fault is that?”

”I’m happy to say it’s mine.” She smirked at him but grinned when she next spoke, “Guess what?”

”What?”

”You let me be on top again.”

They both laughed at that. Two members of mafia royalty laughing in a car over a stupid joke. Steve shook his head at her before starting up the car.

”Let’s just get the fuck out of here.”

  



	10. Chapter 10

They spent the next couple of days planning and preparing for the op and every day they would train together. Steve took every opportunity to touch Natasha and she returned the favour. Occasionally they’d have another make-out session but it never went beyond that, there was always something else to do, some reason to stop. The anticipation was driving Steve mad, every moment they were apart she was all he could think of. Even now as he drove his Land Rover down to Florida, all he could see and feel was the swell of her breasts in his hands and how good her lips felt on his skin. Fuck, he really needed to get his head screwed on straight for this mission, he needed to push her out of his mind, but it was hard when she was currently sat all over Clint throwing her head back and laughing at something Barton said.

Clint fucking Barton, he’d never wanted to kill a man more in his life. He was lounged in the back of the car, _Steve’s_ fucking car, and was shamelessly cracking jokes with _Steve’s_ fiancé. His knuckles whitened as he clutched the steering wheel and forced himself to stare at the road. It didn’t help. He could still hear their animated conversation behind him and her laugh, even that was infuriatingly sexy, was relentless. Every part of him was screaming to pull over and kill the bastard, show him who Natasha belonged to. That she was Steve’s and no one else’s. He tried to remind himself of Natasha’s assurances that there was nothing there, but it’s sure didn’t fucking sound like it.

”I can’t believe you’re bringing that up Clint! You asshole!”, Natasha said as she laughed. Her eyes were wide with humoured annoyance and she was playfully pummelling Clint as he held his arms up defensively.

“Hey, you fell for it.”

”Well, I never imagined that my best friend would have me fake kidnapped just because I said he couldn’t take me in a thousand years.”

  
  


”Sorry, Nat, but that was a challenge I couldn’t help but accept.” Clint was now holding Natasha’s wrists to stop her attacks but they were both laughing so much that the attempt was weak.

“I’m surprised you’re laughing since it didn’t end well for you. I seem to remember-“. The rest was muffled by Clint’s hand as he pulled Natasha closer and forced her to stop.

”Uh-uh-uh, little Nat. You don’t get to tell that story with your boyfriend sat over there.”

Natasha shoved him off with an elbow to the ribs and collapsed back into her seat, her breathing heavy and a shit-eating grin on her face.

  
  


”Awww. Are you embarrassed Barton? Is your precious male ego not going to survive Steve Rogers knowing the truth?Steve-”

“Don’t you dare Nat-“

  
  
“Can you two just cut the bullshit? I’m trying to drive here.”

Steve had had enough. He had seen her playing around with that bastard, practically sitting on his lap. He could feel heat rising up his neck as he saw Clint’s hands touch her. Only he was allowed to touch her. The thought of Barton running his hands up her body, just like he had, of her laughing and pulling him onto her bed. Blood had started pounding in his ears then and his eyes had clouded over with anger before he’d spoke.

”-I’m trying to drive here.”

  
Natasha looked to him then to see if he was serious. He really fucking was. She feigned a sigh and crossed her arms like a petulant child.

”Yes, daddy”, she said mockingly.

Steve had shot up in his seat when she said that. Fucking hell, every time he tried to get one up on her, she had to do this. That one word and all he could imagine was making her scream it as he pounded into her, making her know who her fiancé was, who was really in charge. The look in Natasha’s eye, as he stared into the rear-view mirror, indicated that she knew exactly what she was doing. She always did.

”Careful, darling.”

”Oh, I’m always careful Steve”, Natasha purred at him and he felt his pants beginning to tighten once again. Barton, frankly, looked rather uncomfortable but seemed to be trying to suppress a smirk. Steve was one suppressed smirk away from pulling over and playing out the many violent fantasies he’d had, when he pulled up round the front of the hotel. Guess those fantasies would have to wait.

They were staying at Rosen Shingle Creek, not exactly the most discreet location but they knew Loki would be tracking their every move since they entered his territory. Probably before. That was part of why the team was so small, Steve wanted to hide this as a pre-wedding getaway for him and Natasha, it turned out her presence gave him the perfect excuse to be here. The others were just the basic security they would always have, the Odinson’s would still be suspicious but it was better than no cover at all. They pulled up and the valet was waved off before he could even approach. Natasha shot Steve a look but he only told them to get out of the car.  
  


Steve approached the passenger door before Barton could and offered Natasha his hand. She gave him a daring look as she took it, unsurprised at his iron grip. Steve couldn’t help but stare as she stepped out. She’d dressed like the spoilt heiress he’d told her to but her plunging floral dress, sunhat and piercing eyes framed by straight auburn hair nearly took the air out of his lungs. He wanted to push her right back into that car, away from anyone else who could possibly see her, and ravish her till she was begging. Fuck, why did she always have this effect on him?

“Barton. Do you mind? I’d like a second alone with my future wife.” Steve said, the impatience in his voice clear. His eyes never left Natasha as he spoke, and Clint decided to leave them to it, but he took note of Steve’s progressive grip over Nat.

Once Barton strolled away, Steve walked right up to Natasha and stood directly in front of her. He placed one hand on the roof of the car, effectively pinning her in. That’s when she noted the fist clenched at his side and the stormy gaze focussed on her.

“Natalia Alianovna Romanova” he growled, “Are you trying to kill me?”

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” she said with feigned shock.

  
  
  
“I highly doubt that”. There was a dangerous glint in his eye and he stepped closer, pushing her back further into the car, “I think you know exactly what you’re doing.”

  
  


”Oh, please, Steve. Not everything I do is about you.”

”So, you fawning all over Barton is entirely for your own benefit. Darling, that’s even worse.”

She smirked up at him, at his barely controlled anger. “Look, Steve. I’ve never fucked Clint if that’s your problem. I already told you it’s not like that and....”

Steve’s anger flared then, “What?”

”And if this is how jealous you get, with a guy that’s practically my brother, then I’m quite looking forward to your future discomfort.”

”There won’t be any future discomfort, darling. You’re mine and by the end of the month everyone will know it.”, he lifted her chin up when she looked away and the look he gave her then made her clench her pussy in anticipation. He was impeccably dressed in a Tom Ford suit and god if she didn’t always have a thing for a guy in a suit. Especially one who’s body was pressed against hers. She leant in and whispered in his ear.

”Whatever you say, daddy.”

Natasha pecked him on the lips then and ducked under his arm but Steve grabbed her waist and placed a hand around it possessively before she could walk into the hotel alone. They walked together then and Steve chucked the car keys to a slack- jawed valet before waltzing up the stairs with his fiancé.

жжжжжжжж

“Did you really have to give Clint a room on the opposite wing of the hotel?”

  
  
They were stood in the luxury penthouse suite, getting changed into their evening wear, and sneaking looks at each other as they undressed.

”Well, he was a late addition. There weren’t any available rooms on this side of the hotel.”

”Are you serious Steve?”, Natasha said. She was stood with her arms folded and one hip jutted up. Steve eyes couldn’t help but take in her killer legs in a pair of red Jimmy Choos. He simply smiled at her and shrugged. Natasha stared at him for a moment, before turning heel and strolling out of their room. Steve started after her before realising he didn’t have any shoes on- fuck.

When he finally made it down the stairs and into the lobby, it didn’t take too long for him to find her. In fact, it seemed like every eye in the room was on her, male or female, but none more so than the desk clerk as the beautiful woman spoke to him.  
  
  
  


“Y-yes Ma’am, we can definitely move your brother into the suite across the hall.”

Natasha beamed at him and leant closer over the desk, causing the clerk’s eyes to nearly pop out of their head.   
  


“Thank you very much, Mister?”

  
  


”Atwell. J-James Atwell.”

  
  


”Well, Mr Atwell, I’ll be sure to leave you a _very_ generous tip-“.

  
  


Steve hadn’t bothered to wait for her to finish. Instead the lobby watched as a very determined man, cutting a striking figure in a black tux, made a beeline for the red woman. When he reached Natasha he pulled her into a deep kiss, not unlike the one she’d sprung on him at the meeting. They exchanged knowing looks at each other before turning back to the clerk, who was now clearing his throat awkwardly. He passed a gaze over the lobby and moved his hand to Natasha’s lower back, his hand grazing her ass, forcing anyone still looking to avert their eyes.   
  


“Did you get it done like I asked, honey?”, Steve said. Smiling down at Natasha and then back up at Mr Atwell. He had to hide his pains as he felt the heel of Natasha’s Jimmy Choo grind into his foot as she returned his smile.   
  


“Y-Yes sir. Your brother-in-law is being moved as we speak.”

Steve didn’t even deign to look at the man as he spoke which caused James Atwell to sweat at the collar as he looked at the gorgeous couple in front of him. Natasha was shooting daggers through her smiling gaze at Steve as she spoke.

”Of course, my love. I was just chatting with this _very_ handsome man, who most generously agreed to help me.” Natasha smirked as Steve’s face turned to stone.

”We’re leaving now, darling.” Steve began to move them away from the counter but Natasha couldn’t help but give a flirtatious thanks to the clerk before they left.

”You’re unbelievable”, Steve muttered through gritted teeth as he continued to steer them through the lobby.

”Well, I would hate to be predictable.”

This goddamn woman. She drove him mad in more ways than one and he couldn’t help but have the feeling he’d be chasing after her for the rest of their lives. She pulled ahead of him, grabbing Steve by the hand as they wove through the crowd. He couldn’t help but fantasise about ripping off the slinky red dress she was currently sashaying her hips in. He was honestly so distracted that he hadn’t realised where they were heading.

”Well, we’re dressed for dinner aren’t we? Come on Rogers, I’m fucking starving.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Not much plot but a lot of feelings - mainly jealous ones. I’m planning on getting some more action into the next chapter but who knows till I write it. Thank you so much for all your comments, the feedback has been awesome. 
> 
> On a corona virus note. Please stay home and keep yourselves and others safe. I hope everyone is managing to cope and I look forward to updating soon.


	11. Chapter 11

They were given a table almost immediately, under their aliases of Mr and Mrs Huntington, and Natasha practically snatched the menu from the waiter as they sat.

  
  


“Do you Americans ever have Russian food?”

  
  


Steve looked up from his menu and smirked at the obviously annoyed Natasha.

“Well, we don’t exactly have the best relationship with Russia in this country.”

“That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard, it’s not like a chicken kiev waged war against you.”

  
  
  


Steve almost spat out his Dom Perignon at that. Natasha just watched him with her arms folded.

  
  


”I can’t argue with that one.”

  
  


Steve leaned back in his chair and signalled to the waiter to approach, which he did very hurriedly. 

“My wife would very much like a chicken kiev dish but there doesn’t appear to be one on the menu.”

  
  


The waiter looked at him, about to launch into an explanation of hotel policy, when he noticed the dangerous glint in Steve’s eye and the cool gaze of Natasha, and decided that it wasn’t worth the hassle.

  
  


”Of course, Sir. We make every accommodation for our guests. And for you, sir?”

  
  


Steve gave his order and turned back to Natasha who’s attention was already elsewhere.

  
  


”Do I not get a thank you, my darling?”

  
  


”Oh, please, Steve. You managed to order me some food”. Natasha didn’t even look at Steve as she spoke, her eyes were locked on an approaching figure. The man was dressed in a waiter’s uniform and didn’t seem out of the ordinary to Steve, but his rapid movement towards them wasn’t exactly normal.

  
  


”Steve?”

  
”Yes”

  
  


”Do you have anything on you?”

  
Steve didn’t need to ask what she meant. His body began to tense and his hand was already moving to the handgun tucked into the back of his tux.

  
”Just a handgun and some cuff links I can do some shit with.”

  
  


”I’ve got a couple knives but that’s it”. Natasha’s gaze was still locked on the approaching man as she spoke. Anyone watching the table would not observe anything abnormal, just an absurdly attractive couple facing each other waiting for food, they’d miss Steve’s hand resting just above the trigger.

  
  


”Ok, I’ll move first - “

”Wait, Steve.”, he turned to her for an explanation, “It might be nothing. I’m not causing a bloodbath and throwing this operation to shit over nothing.”

Steve grimaced at that, he wasn’t used to being on the defence, waiting for someone else to make the first move. They both sat there, frozen in place, as the waiter arrived at their table. Neither of them recognised the man. Steve couldn’t tell if that was a good or a bad thing. The waiter’s attention seemed fixated on Natasha and Steve took the opportunity to remove the handgun from his pants and point it towards the waiter under the tablecloth.   
  


“Miss Romanova is it?”, the waiter said, his voice deep. Natasha’s breath hitched at the use of her real name but the waiter’s face seemed perfectly normal. Steve didn’t like this one bit.

”And, if I am?”, Natasha said, sporting a cool demeanour as though she expected this.   
  


“I was asked to deliver this to you.”, the man reached into his inside pocket and Steve immediately came alert, clutching the gun tighter. The waiter revealed a cream envelope from his pocket which he placed carefully in front of Natasha. Steve didn’t loosen his grip on the gun, there was a lot of things small enough to fit in that envelope and still kill them.  
Natasha’s demeanour never shifted and she merely stared at the waiter till he excused himself. As he walked away, Steve could see the cracks in Natasha’s façade bleed through as she stared at the envelope, not opening it.

“Natasha-”, Steve’s voice died before he got any further. He could feel Natasha’s dread pulsing from every part of her and he decided instead to reach for hand. His grip was firm but the intent was clear, _I’m here with you.  
_

Natasha loosed a breath and almost casually opened the envelope, in an unusually poor attempt to disguise her feelings. Steve was confused by the contents but from the look in Natasha’s eyes, she knew exactly what this was - and what it meant. The envelope was revealed to hold a ring, one that clearly spared no expense. The ring was exquisitely crafted, with a mix of emeralds and diamonds encrusted in it. It was also clear what the ring was for - an engagement.   
  
  


Steve looked up then, ready to gauge her reaction, but found the chair empty. He turned around to find Natasha weaving through the tables on the way towards the exit, leaving the ring on the table. Steve considered it for a moment, before picking up the ring, sliding it into the pocket of his tux and leaving his chair to go after her. On his way, he ran into the waiter carrying their food and brushed past him. The waiter, who had spent 20 minutes arguing with the very particular chef about the Kiev, decided that he fucking hated his job.   
  


Steve found Natasha in their bathroom, her knees clutches to her chest and a vacant look in her eyes. He sighed and ran a frustrated hand through his hair, counting to three, before opening the door and stepping into the bathroom. She barely seemed to register his presence and so he merely slid down the opposing wall and mimicked her position.   
  


“It’s from him”, Natasha’s voice was barely above a whisper.

”Him?”, Steve asked the question, already knowing the answer.

“You know who I fucking mean Steve”, he did and so he simply waited for her to continue. Natasha’s eyes had glazed over and he could see the tremble in her hands as she clutched her knees tighter.

“He gave it to me 6 months after we met. At the time I thought it was too soon. Since I’m now marrying you after a month, I guess the joke’s on me”, a laugh escaped her then, but it was cold and seemingly unconscious.

”He didn’t take that well, to say the least. Just at the moment I wanted him to step back, he just suffocated me more. He started showing up everywhere, not just at my house, but **everywhere.** I couldn’t see my friends without him or one of his fucking lackeys following me. I couldn’t fucking breathe-“ Natasha’s voice cracked, and she tried to regain her composure, before deciding it didn’t matter. She let the tears stream down her face, but she still didn’t look at Steve.

”Eventually I couldn’t do it anymore and I broke it off with him...... if you thought he didn’t like it when I rejected the engagement, imagine his reaction to that.”, Steve’s anger had been slowly building as she spoke, and,frankly, he didn’t want to imagine what that fucker did. Turns out he didn’t have to.

”He started to send me these notes, in envelopes just like the one the ring was in. At first they were nice, begging me to take him back, and then they..... changed. He started telling me that he was the only one that could keep me safe, that it was a dangerous world and anything could happen to me. He didn’t realise that he was the only person I was fucking terrified of by then. The final note I got was that- that if I didn’t come to him, he’d take me himself.”

”And that’s when he tried to kidnap you.” Steve interrupted for the first time. His fists were clenched violently as he spoke, he was close to punching the wall. The anger coursing through his veins was like nothing he’d felt in a long time, not since Peggy’s death, and he knew exactly who’d be on the receiving end of that anger tomorrow.

”Yes. I had been a Clint’s, it’s probably what set him off. Clint fucking hated him from the moment we started dating, he thought he was one big fucking red flag. I should have listened, I should have fucking listened to him, he’s the only one that’s ever been there for me. Loki tried to break me away from him, from everyone in my life. Classic fucking abuser, it took me that long to realise what he was. It’s not like I’d met a bunch nice guys in our world, took me a while to see which ones were alright and who was fully fucking psychotic.” Natasha’s face was flushed with anger, her tears sticking to her face. “Anyway, Loki must have heard I’d been spending a lot of time at his and decided now was the time.”

”But, he didn’t get you. You fought him off-“

”Fucking barely.” Natasha hit her head against the wall repeatedly, trying to stop his words echoing through her head. She’d started saying them out loud without realising, “You’re going to be fine Tasha, everything’s ok, I’m going to take very good care of you Tasha, you know you have to come with me Tasha, stop fighting Tasha, I know what’s best Tasha-“ 

She was stopped suddenly by Steve as he forcibly stopped her bashing in her head and began to cradle her in his arms. It was that comforting touch that sent her over the edge.

”I always hated that nickname, ‘Tasha’, now every time I hear it, I- I see him and I hear his voice. He won’t leave me alone even now and I haven’t heard from the real him in months.”, Sobs were wrecking her body at this point and Steve could do nothing but hold her. They sat like that for what felt like hours before Steve spoke.

”I’m sorry, Natasha.”

Natasha didn’t reply. She just kept herself buried in his chest, taking comfort in his warmth and his steadiness. She was honestly surprised at herself for being so vulnerable with him. It was a side she showed to very few people and she barely knew him. But..... but he’d been there when she needed him and he didn’t blame her like her father did. Her father who told her she should have known better, who said she’d put them all in jeopardy and ruined a potential alliance. It had taken her nearly getting kidnapped for him to stop blaming her so much, but it was still there.   
  
  


Steve stared down at her, his hand stroking her gorgeous hair, and tried to figure out what she was thinking. He’d never been the most emotionally mature person, but he was overwhelmed by this desperate need to protect her. And a desperate need to violently murder Loki.

They spent the night like that, all tangled up in each other, slumped against a bathroom wall, and when they awoke the next day, it was with a steely resolve to go murder that fucking bastard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter, it’s quite an emotional one. Hopefully I’ll get around to the Loki operation next time but I won’t know till I write it. 
> 
> Thank you for all your great feedback and feel free to comment. I hope to update soon.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, hope you enjoyed this chapter, more to come. Comments are appreciated. Happy to have constructive feedback.


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